“Are not two sparrows sold for a penny? Yet not one of them will fall to the ground outside your Father’s care.”—Matthew 10:29

Yesterday I had a few tears to find my “Mama Bird” passed away in the bottom of her cage. Mama finch had been a proud mama of about 15 little finches, usually in broods of about three little chicks. Each time she’d lay eggs, she’d devotedly sit on them—or chase papa finch around the cage until he took his turn! After her hungry babies hatched, both parents would eat enormous quantities of seeds to regurgitate into their loud squawking babies’ eager open throats. Most of the chicks would leave the nest on their own, but occasionally, papa or mama finch would resolutely nudge a fledgling out and then seem to lean back and watch their baby’s flight with relief.

Lately, mama and papa finch had been separated due to her relentless henpecking. Every time they’d get in a cage together, papa would chirp his happy song, and she’d respond by nipping his neck. We kept their cages near so they could see and hear each other but gave her the space she wanted. She had a peaceful old age and an uneventful death. We gave her a respectful burial in the woods.

Before the verse about the sparrows, Jesus has been warning his disciples that they were going to get a lot of grief in this life. Other people would reject them, fight them and maybe even kill them, but He cautioned them not to fear those people.

We should only fear the Lord.

We should seek to please the Lord.

As I read this passage, I thought about the March for Life I went to last week in Atlanta. This was an opportunity to publicly stand up for the least of these, the unborn in their mother’s wombs. It touched my heart deeply, and as I walked in the damp streets I thought about how precious each baby’s life is. Suddenly it occurred to me that the strangers around me in the March and people just in the city around us were also precious, beloved by God.

Sometimes we forget this and take people for granted, but God never does.

God cares for even the smallest sparrows; he knows the details of their lives more than I know the details of my sweet mama finch’s life.

How much more does He care for the unborn?

How much does He care for and notice each of us?

On both the good days when others see Christ in us and the not-so-good days when we fall, God is watching us, caring for us, and encouraging us to be kind, but also exhorting us to stand up for Him.

What does that look like in your life? How do we stand up for our faith and share it?

Have you ever had a time when you were too afraid to stand up for your faith? How did that feel?

What are some small ways, cups-of-water ways, that we can shine God’s love to others?

Lord, when I hear the birds chirping and see their graceful flight, help me to remember Your love and care for even the least of them. Help me to fear only You and not the people who don’t respect my faith. Help me to have courage and to trust You in the times when I feel intimidated. Help me to love all people and to have compassion on them, even as You have compassion on the birds.

Edna King, B.S.Ed., M.Ed. in Early Childhood Education, home schools her two younger sons. She and her husband, Mark, have four children. Edna’s oldest child is an adult, her youngest child is in heaven after a lengthy battle with cancer, and her middle children are adopted boys from Ukraine. She brings a unique perspective on parenting to her role in Family Life Ministry and draws upon her varied life experiences, 17 years of teaching, and the Orthodox faith to lovingly help other parents.

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